Student Newspaper of the College of the Holy Cross

Field Hockey Makes Patriot League Tournament Second Straight Year, Connolly Sets Scoring Record

The Holy Cross field hockey team just wrapped up their season this past weekend, losing to Boston University in the Patriot League Semi-finals, which marks the second straight year the Crusaders qualified for the Patriot League Tournament.

Senior Maureen Connolly set the Holy Cross single season points record this year as well, scoring 47 on the year, capping a career where she scored 123 points, including 50 goals, both of which are good for second place all-time on the Holy Cross career list. Connolly answered a few questions for the Crusader about the season, and Holy Cross Field Hockey moving forward.

Q: How does it feel finishing senior year as the Holy Cross single season points record holder?

A: It is really exciting to cap off my senior year as Holy Cross’ single season points record holder. Every goal is a team effort so being able to score that many points showcases how talented our team was as a whole this season and I am very proud to have a record that highlights that.

Q: 50 career goals is a lot of goals. Have there been any particularly memorable ones?

A: A goal that sticks out to me is the first goal of our game against Colgate this year. Patriot League games are always intense and I ended up scoring off a corner play, something the team had worked on all week in practice. Seeing the payoff of scoring that goal was huge momentum for us in that game and ultimately helped us pull out that big win.

Q: What’s one of your Holy Cross FH favorite memories?

A: One of my favorite HCFH memories is the moment we found out we made it to the Patriot League tournament this year, as well as last year. This year in particular, our fate came down to a game against Lafayette where we ended up decisively winning and sealing our spot in the tournament. It was a true moment of pride and happiness both this year and last year and the excitement and testament to our team’s talent and progress is something I will never forget.

Q: Technically you still have one more game to play, since you’ve been picked for the NFHCA Senior Game. How does it feel to be picked to play in that game?

A:It is a huge honor to be picked to play for the NFHCA Senior Game. There will be some extremely talented field hockey players there and I am excited to get to play with the best of the best. I am humbled to get the opportunity and definitely looking forward to that experience in Louisville.

Q: Over the course of the past four years, the team has undergone a turnaround, going from a 3-16 record your freshman year to qualifying for the Patriot League tournament two years in a row. What’s it been like being a part of that?

A: It has been tremendous being part of a growing program. It has been a lot of hard work but seeing first hand the progress we have made as a team from year to year is what makes the grind worth it. The Holy Cross field hockey team is a special program because of the fact that we have been able to turn the program around in just a few short years. I am so excited for the future of the program, as I think they will continue to grow and expect to see some big and amazing things!